


Gray Skies

by Michael_Demos



Category: Les Schtroumpfs | The Smurfs
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-15
Updated: 2019-10-17
Packaged: 2020-12-17 04:22:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21048218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Michael_Demos/pseuds/Michael_Demos
Summary: Gray, a common thief, steals for food. One day his luck takes a turn for the worse when he pickpockets Gargamel, who turns him into a Smurf and ends up in the river. When Smurfette and Hefty rescue him from drowning, they take him back to the village, but he quickly runs away, befriending Thief and Schemer in the process. He plans to have Gargamel turn him back into a human.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I’m using Version M, per usual. Yes, Gray is heavily based off of Aladdin.

“Thief! Stop him!!”

Gray laughed as he dodged the shopkeeper’s outstretched arm. “Can’t catch me!!” Tucking the recently stolen pouch of coins under his arm, he ducked under an awning, slipped through the grasp of a guard, and leapt over a fence. From there, he weaved around piles of exotic rugs, knocking them over, then dove into an alleyway while the angry people were removing the obstacle.

The tawny-haired pickpocket whistled as he reached a cunningly disguised door. He glanced around, checking that he hadn’t been followed, then entered.

The room he found himself in was small and dim, but Gray knew from experience that there was a man sitting on a stool at a table a few feet in front of him. Gray didn’t know the man; the man liked it that way. That was why the room was dark- you couldn’t identify the man. The man, however, seemed to know everything.

“Gray, you’ve returned.”

The thief grinned as he approached. “I got you some more coins.”

There was a creak as the man leaned forward. “So? You won’t get food with words, Gray. Give me something solid.”

In response, the pickpocket tossed the pouch forward. It made a small clinking noise as it hit the man’s palm.

“Ahhh, that’s better.” The man sounded pleased, and there were several more small clinks as the man counted. Gray waited, and as he waited, he thought of the man.

The man couldn’t be caught, they said. The man bought everything and sold even more, they said. The man, the man, the man- there were many legends surrounding the man, and just as many questions. How could he see without a light? How could he know everyone without first hearing their voice? How could he know precisely what someone needed?

Of course there were answers. Whether or not they were the right ones was unknown to everybody but the man. Some said he was a sorcerer. Some said he was a monster. Some even said he was the devil himself-

“-ay- Gray-  _ Gray! _ ”

Gray blinked, snapping back to reality. “Right,” he said sheepishly. “Sorry. Er, what was that?”

The man sounded exasperated as he replied, “I told you that I would give you a loaf of bread and a cold apple pie for this.”

Gray frowned. “That’s all? But last time you gave me two hot pies and a bottle of cider!”

“That’s because last time you brought me more,” the man responded, sounding irritated. “Bring me more and you’ll get more, Gray.”

Gray sighed. He knew that it was useless to try and argue with the man. “Yes, sir,” he said, turning and feeling for the door. “I’ll come back for all of it, just give me a few minutes.” As he opened the door, he did the same thing he always did, turning quickly to catch a glimpse of the man. As always, the room was briefly illuminated. As always, Gray gazed back into the room, scrutinizing the space he had just vacated. And as always, the room was empty.

* * *

“Since I finally have enough gold to buy that amulet,” the haggard wizard told his cat, “I can finally destroy the Smurfs!”

“Mrowr?” Azrael asked, twitching her orange tail with irritation.

“Well, of course I’m not buying food,” Gargamel retorted. “We’ll have more than enough food once the Smurfs are gone, you idiot feline!”

Azrael rolled her eyes. “Meow,” she commented dryly.

“I am not obsessed,” the sorcerer grumbled with a scowl. “I just think about them and how I want to destroy them every single day!”

Azrael muttered something, shaking her head. She was loyal to Gargamel, sure- but sometimes she just wanted to slap him- with her claws out.

As they approached the brightly colored stall, Azrael looked up at the shopkeeper, who stood patiently behind the oak table. He was slim and good-looking- for a human- and dressed in a blue robe that looked like it had once belonged to an emperor. Sniffing the air, Azrael spat with disgust. The human was obviously a wizard or a sorcerer or a magician of some sort; he had the stink of magic all over him. The finery was probably a facade.

The wares he offered on the long red tablecloth seemed to be genuine, however, and Azrael leapt up to investigate. There was a twisted ivory dagger which smelled of rotten wood. Next to it were a pair of matching crystal goblets which smelled sickeningly sweet, but with a threatening undertone which made the cat’s fur bristle. She shuddered and quickly moved on, past the ruby ring which seemed to whisper to her, the carefully polished harp which was playing softly by itself, and the empty iron birdcage- although what bird ever grew that big, Azrael didn’t want to know.

“I want that one,” Gargamel said commandingly, drawing himself up to his full height and pointing. Azrael looked at the object. It was an oval-shaped amethyst set in a gold frame, on a matching golden chain. The magic was constantly changing scents- blueberries, tuna, leather, and others.

The man chuckled, baring his teeth in a grin. “Oh, you can’t afford that, friend.”

Gargamel looked offended. “Excuse me?! I can definitely afford that-“

“Meow,” Azrael commented, jabbing a paw at the price tag.

Gargamel bent down, squinting at the cramped, ornate writing. “...oh.”

“Yes,” the man agreed. “My items are very valuable… however, I might have one trinket for you.”

He bent down, vanishing under the table. A few moments went by, and he emerged with a small, shabbily wrapped package. He handed it to the sorcerer, who hastily tore the greasy paper apart. It was an amulet like the previous one, except for the fact that it was rusted and tarnished.

Gargamel scowled. “What’s wrong with it?!”

The shopkeeper shrugged. “Nothing. It’s the exact same thing as the other, with one exception- it only has one spell left.”

Gargamel rummaged in his patched-up robes for his money pouch, pouring his last three golden coins into the table. “There. Tell me what this does!”

The shopkeeper shook his head. “Nobody knows. You’ll have to use it first. Simply place it around the neck of your loved one, enemy, or pet-“

At that, Azrael jumped down, retreating under the table.

“-and the magic will do the rest.”

Gargamel shoved the amulet into his pocket, turning away without even so much as a goodbye. Azrael came out from hiding and rubbed against his leg. “Tch. I’ll bet it’s a sham, Azrael,” he said as they walked. “Well, I’ll soon find out when I capture a Smurf.”

* * *

Not far away behind a grocer's stall, Gray was eyeing the ragged-looking man. He didn’t look like much even for a supposed sorcerer, but the thief had seen the amulet. That had to be worth a hot pie, even if it was rusty. He slipped out from behind the stall, acting like just another peasant, and began following the man.

It was a few minutes before Gray could get close enough, but he liked where he was. There were a lot of people here, especially now that they were going under an archway, and it would be a simple thing to get even closer.

Gray timed his next step perfectly; placing his left foot a few inches to the right, he lost his balance and bumped into the rich-looking woman next to him. She frowned, and snapped her fingers, and her burly servant shoved Gray away, hard. He crashed into a pair of merchants, who grumbled and pushed him away, sending him toppling into his target. After that, it was almost too easy- he slipped his hand into the man’s robes, transferring the amulet into his own pocket, and the angry man yelled, “watch where you’re going, why don’t you!” Gray grinned as the man elbowed him away, and used the momentum to escape the crowd, which by this time had passed through the archway.

He hummed to himself as he headed away from the commotion, feeling the light weight of the stolen amulet in his pocket. That had been very easy. If what he’d overheard was true, the man in the dark room would be pleased. Unfortunately, the sorcerer was not.

“Thief!!”

Gray’s grin disappeared as he glanced over his shoulder. The man had discovered the thievery, and was giving chase. “Time to go,” he muttered, and broke into a sprint.

Gray leapt over a spice-seller’s stall, scrambling up onto an awning and onto the roof, then led the furious man on a chase throughout town. He was just beginning to enjoy himself when he made his mistake- he began to relax.

Turning and running backwards, he waved to the man below. He laughed as he saw the man trip over his ragged robes, then stuck his tongue out. As he turned around, his smile fell. He was nearly at the end of the row of buildings, and had nowhere else to go. Thinking fast, he skidded to a stop, intending to turn around and go back the way he’d come, but as he did so, his foot hit some loose shingles. He lurched forwards, frantically windmilling his arms, but failed to regain his balance and tumbled over the edge.

Gray got the wind knocked out of him as he crashed through the roof of a small shed. The amulet fell out of his pocket. As soon as he could, he pulled himself up, grabbing the amulet and staggering out through the door. He immediately fell to his knees, his head spinning, but managed to keep his hold on the amulet.

“Now I’ve got you!!” The angry wizard sprinted up to him, panting. “Give me that!” He wrested the amulet away. “You know,” he said nastily from somewhere above Gray, “I was going to use this on those miserable Smurfs, but now I think I’ll use it on you instead!”

Hearing that, Gray shook his head to dispel the dizziness, and scrambled to his feet. Before he could take more than one step, he found his arm in the grip of the sorcerer, who yanked him back and causing him to fall down. The sorcerer lunged forward, wrestling the chain of the amulet around Gray’s neck.

Gray was startled, and naturally fought against the magician, but once he finally pushed the man away, he found that the amulet was glowing blue. He tried to pull it off, but some strange force prevented it from ascending above his chin. The glow got brighter and brighter, and as Gray’s stomach began to churn, he let go and dropped to the ground. Everything was spinning, rolling, heaving from side to side- the sorcerer was getting bigger and cackling maniacally- then suddenly it stopped.


	2. Chapter 2

Gray lifted the the amulet off of him- only it wasn’t an amulet anymore. It was a simple rock on a length of twine, and Gray shoved it aside. Everything had gotten very big. It was making him dizzy again. He rubbed his head, looking up at the sorcerer… and up, and up.

“What did you…” he stopped. Nothing was coming out. He tried again. “What did you do to me?”

The sorcerer bent down. He looked shocked, but then an evil grin spread over his face. “Well, I wanted a Smurf and now I have one!!”

“What are you-“ Gray looked down at himself, and shouted in surprise. He was blue- _ blue!! _ “Turn me back!!” He yelled up at the man. “Fix this!! I don’t want-“

He was forced to break off, dodging the grabbing hand that came his way. “Hey!!”

“Come back here, you little blue pest!”

Gray dodged the hand again, then turned and ran. “Forget the amulet,” he panted. I have to hide!!”

“Meow!!”

Gray scrambled backwards as an orange cat pounced just in front of him. It was the wizard’s cat- she looked hungry. He turned right, not caring about where he went. It just had to get him away from those two.

Unfortunately for Gray, the path he chose took him to a long, empty dock. Seeing no other option, however, he continued running.

“Azrael, faster!!”

Gray heard a triumphant meow, a second before he was violently knocked to the ground. He cried out from the impact.

“Good job, Azrael!”

Gray felt Azrael’s paws lift off of him, and he took a deep breath, then was lifted up in the wizard’s fist.

Gray twisted, trying to free himself, but was unsuccessful. As he was brought to eye level, he glared at his captor. “Let go of me and _fix_ this!!”

The wizard just laughed, giving Gray the feeling that he was about to get a closer look at his molars than he’d ever wanted.

“Not a chance, Smurf! You’re mine now- what _is_ it, Azrael?!”

Azrael had been pawing impatiently at Gargamel’s leg for some time now. Now that she had his attention, she looked back towards the town, where a group of guards was advancing.

“Oh no!” Gargamel backed up, scooping Azrael into his arms. The she-cat liked this; now she was in a position to get to that tasty-looking blue morsel. She licked her jaws, swiping at Gray, who leaned back. He was just out of her reach.

As Gargamel frantically searched for a way out of his situation, Azrael hissed at Gray, then lunged. She surprised Gargamel, and he let go of both of them, stumbling backwards.

Azrael, now perched precariously on Gargamel’s head, took one look at the water below and decided that if she was going to get wet, she was at least going to eat a Smurf first.

Gray clung to the wizard’s hood. They were all balancing on the very edge of the dock, with guards on one side and the water on the other. Gray didn’t like either option- the guards didn’t like him very much, and he had never learned to swim. He looked up at the cat, who jumped at that moment. She knocked the sorcerer off balance, just as her teeth closed on the space where Gray had been moments before, and they all toppled into the water.

Gray fought his way to the surface, and moments later had to duck beneath the waves again as the cat’s flailing legs swept the air. He tried his best to hold his breath, noticing that the bubbles churned up by the panicked sorcerer and cat were getting farther away. He clawed his way to the surface again, trying to stay afloat as he was swept away, then something struck him on the head and his vision went dark.

* * *

“It was very smurfy of you to take me on this boat ride, Hefty,” the blonde Smurfette told her companion. The tough-looking Smurf holding the oars turned pink, offering a slightly embarrassed grin. “Anything for you, Smurfette,” Hefty replied, turning away to hide his blush.

The two Smurfs were enjoying a date in a small rowboat along the River Smurf. Hefty had finally gathered the courage, and once Smurfette said yes, Hefty had been elated.

“But it was nothing. I mean, it wasn’t just me. I had help,” he continued. “Dreamy gave me the plans for the boat, Handy helped build it…” He cleared his throat. “And… Vanity and Blossom helped me pick these for you.” He reached under his seat and pulled out a bouquet of flowers- daisies and bluebells.

Smurfette gasped, her eyes shining with happiness. “Hefty Smurf! These are for me?!” She took the bouquet, sniffing at the flowers. “Oh, Hefty, they’re just smurfy!”

“Not as smurfy as you,” Hefty said honestly, rubbing the heart tattoo on his arm. He was suddenly nervous. He looked down, taking a deep breath. “Look, I’ve… I’ve known you for a long time, and never met anyone like you. You’re smurfy, and amazing, and a kind and wonderful Smurf, and…” he sighed. “Smurfette, I-“

“Hefty, _look_!!”

He broke off, directing his gaze at where Smurfette was pointing. For a moment he didn’t see anything, then the rowboat went around a bend and he gasped.

Gripping a rock in the middle of the river was a Smurf. The Smurf seemed exhausted, and looked like he’d been tossed through a bramble bush. Catching sight of the shocked duo, he lifted his head and said something inaudible, inching towards them. However, this small motion caused his grip to slip, and the Smurf slid under the water.

“Oh no!!” Smurfette cried out, but Hefty was faster. “Stay there, Smurfette,” he told her, then, in one fluid motion, got to his feet and dove beneath the waves. A few moments later he reappeared, the barely conscious Smurf holding on as well as he could. Together they made their way back.

When Hefty reached the boat, Smurfette reached down for the Smurf and pulled him aboard, Hefty following close behind.

“Oh my smurfness,” the blonde said in concern, “is he alright?”

Hefty examined the Smurf. He was wearing a torn-up gray shirt, as well as the customary white pants and hat, and was very battered and bruised, but nothing seemed to be broken. Miraculously, he hadn’t inhaled much water, and Hefty was able to remove it using mouth-to-mouth. 

The rescued Smurf coughed, dispelling the water, and lifted his head. “Who…” he whispered, then closed his eyes and slumped back down. Hefty breathed a sigh of relief, looking up at Smurfette with a smile. “Well, I’m no doctor,” he said, “but I think he’s gonna be fine.”

* * *

Once they reached the village, Smurfette ran to get Nurse while Hefty followed close behind with the Smurf. The strongman Smurf looked down at the unconscious Smurf, and sped up.

“I’m here,” Nurse said, suddenly appearing from his house with Smurfette in tow. His face was stern like usual, but Hefty could tell that he was just as worried as Smurfette.

“Bring him inside,” Nurse commanded. “Smurfette, stay outside. Make sure nobody gets in.” He helped Hefty set the Smurf on the bed, then began taking his pulse and checking his breathing.

“How is he?” Hefty asked after a while. Nurse whipped his head around, glaring. “He’s perfectly fine, no thanks to you. With all of these bumps and scratches, it’s a wonder the poor thing’s not dead!!”

Hefty hurried to defend himself. “Hey, he looked rough already when Smurfette pulled him out of the water!”

“Hmph,” Nurse grunted, turning to the cabinets and pulling out several rolls of bandages. As he began wrapping up the Smurf’s injuries, he said, “well, be sure to thank her for that.”

They were both suddenly distracted by a gasp from the Smurf. He sat upright, looking around wildly.

“Look, you woke him up,” commented Nurse dryly. “Good job.”


	3. Chapter 3

Gray held his head, wincing. He was on a bed in what looked like a doctor’s office. He looked down at his hands and shuddered. He was still blue! “Maybe I’m dead,” he muttered. “I drowned. I-“

“You’re not dead,” a sharp voice said from in front of him, “though a few more minutes and you might have been.”

Gray looked up. By his bedside stood two blue people- one tough-looking guy with a read heart tattoo on each arm, and a stern-faced person in a white coat. They both wore white pants and hats, but the stern one had a red cross on his.

Gray inched backwards. “Ah- what?” He asked quietly. “Who are you?”

The two exchanged glances. “He’s hit his head, too,” the one in the white coat muttered. “Great job, Hefty.”

The tattooed person- Hefty- protested. “Hey, I promise I didn’t smurf him!”

Gray had had enough of this. He slid off of the bed, backing away from the two. “I don’t know who you are,” he said, trying to stay calm, “but I want to go back to the town.”

Hefty frowned. “The human town? We’re not allowed there.”

“No no no,” Gray said. He stopped as he hit a wall, and started feeling around for a door. “I’m not one of you! A sorcerer cursed me! I’m a human and I belong there, with the humans- all of this is just one big mistake-“ as Hefty and his companion moved towards him, Gray panicked. “Stay away from me!!”

His grasping hand finally found what it had been looking for, and, turning the knob, shoved open the door and flung himself through. Slamming the door closed, the thief found himself in a very neatly arranged bedroom. At the jiggle of the doorknob, Gray shoved a nearby chair underneath.

Breathing hard, he scrambled away from the door, then took a moment to get his bearings. Ignoring the muffled voices from the other side, he looked around.

The room was one of the neatest he’d ever been in. The blue walls matched the blue bed with sharply creased sheets, and a small desk and dresser matched the chair he’d used. On the desk there was a hat identical to the one the blue people had worn, a stack of papers, a quill and inkwell, and a small hand mirror. Gray picked up this last item and gazed in.

“Oh no…” he whispered, patting his face. This couldn’t possibly be him!! His eyes were the same- larger and rounder with fear, and with a scratch under one, but still the familiar hazel he remembered. His skin was as blue as the skin of the people in the other room, however, and his nose had grown longer and rounder, as had his ears. His hand shook, and he dropped the mirror. It shattered.

* * *

“Hey, is everything alright in here?” Smurfette asked, poking her head through the doorway.

Hefty and Nurse turned around. “Not exactly,” Hefty said sheepishly.

Nurse poked Hefty. “_ This _Smurf scared my patient. He’s in my bedroom and has barricaded the door.”

Hefty ignored that. “He says he’s a human. He also says a sorcerer cursed him. He might be talking about Gargamel- I think he’s telling the truth.”

Smurfette approached the door, knocking gently. There was a thud from within, followed by a frantic yell.

“Go away!!”

“Are you okay?” Smurfette called. She put an ear to the door, listening. Hearing nothing, she continued. “We’re not going to hurt you. We just want to know if you’re okay!”

Silence.

“Hello?” The blonde asked. “My name’s Smurfette. Out here are Hefty and Nurse. We’re not trying to scare you. Will you come out?”

There was silence, and Nurse stepped forward. “Look, whoever you are, you still need rest. Now, I don’t want to do anything I don’t have to do, so come out now so I can keep an eye on you!”

Still, there was silence.

“Don’t make me come in-”

Hefty shushed him, eyes narrowed. Smurfette and Nurse moved out of the way as he approached the door as well. Hefty tried the knob. It turned, but the door didn’t open, as it hadn’t before. He gritted his teeth, pushing his shoulder against the door. His muscles stood out as he shoved, and eventually, with a grinding noise, the door slid open.

Nurse made a strangled squeak of outrage as he saw the grooves the chair’s legs had scraped in his floor.

Hefty scanned the room, then his eyes widened as his gaze landed on the window- open.

He muttered something under his breath as he crossed the room, Smurfette close behind. It looked like the Smurf- the human- whatever he was- had escaped through the window and into the forest.

“We have to find him,” Smurfette said, voice laced with worry. “Even if he isn’t telling the truth, he might run into Gargamel, or Azrael, or Monty, or-“

“Hey.” Hefty placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “We’ll find him, Smurfette. Don’t worry.”

* * *

Gray had indeed escaped through the window, and was now sprinting through the unfamiliar forest. It would have been easier if he was his previous size, but he couldn’t do anything about that. All he could do was to get as far away from those blue people as possible, find the river, and hopefully get back to the town and get help from the man in the dark room.

On the other hand, nobody knew where the man’s loyalties laid. It was possible that the man might help him, but equally as possible that the man might decide to hold him as one of his wares. Gray shuddered.

When he finally slowed down, he noticed that his stomach was rumbling again. “I wish I’d taken that bread and pie,” he muttered, plopping down on a small stone. “Stupid sorcerer… I could have had two pies, maybe even a little ale or wine to go with it.” He sighed, placing his head in his hands. “What am I gonna do…”

“Well, for starters, you could eat _ this _pie,” a voice in front of him said.

Gray yelped, falling backwards off of his seat. He’d been so absorbed in his thoughts that he hadn’t even noticed the two blue people approaching him. They were different ones than before, he thought, scrambling backwards. One was wearing a black outfit and a black eye mask. The other had a shifty look, and was holding a steaming pie.

Gray eyed the pie, wondering if he could snatch it and run. His stomach growled again, and he slowly got to his feet. “Who are you?”

“I’m Thief,” said the one in black. “This is Schemer. We’re Smurfs, like you.”

Gray kept his eyes on the pie, inching closer. “I’m not a Smurf. I’m a human. A sorcerer cursed me.”

Thief shrugged. “Well, whatever you are, you look hungry. I stole this from Greedy. Here!” He took the pie from Schemer and held it out to Gray.

Gray looked up at Thief, who really seemed like he wanted to help, then Schemer, who was studying them both, then took the pie. Quickly backing away and retaking his seat, he took a cautious bite. Instantly, his eyes widened, and he dug in with gusto.

“What, did you think it was bad?” Thief laughed. “Greedy’s never smurfed bad food in his life!”

In between bites, Gray looked up, answering, “no, I just thought…” he wiped his mouth. “I thought you guys were monsters.”

Thief burst out in laughter. “Monsters? No way. Sure, Grouchy can be a bit monsterish, but he’s always, well, grouchy.”

Schemer crouched next to Gray. “So what’s your plan?”

“My plan?”

“Yeah,” Schemer said. “You have to smurf a plan! What are you going to do to get yourself turned back?”

Gray blinked, taken aback. “You… want to help?”

“Of course we do,” Schemer said with a smile.

“Honor among thieves, right?” Thief chimed in.

“We have a bit of experience with wizardry ourselves.”

“Sure we do,” the black-clad Smurf agreed. “There’s this really unsmurfy wizard named Gargamel who’s always trying to catch us, or destroy us, or use us in an experiment.”

Gray shuddered. “I think I met him.”

Thief was shocked. “You met him?! How’d you get away??”

“By nearly drowning,” Gray admitted, after finishing the pie. He explained how he’d been turned into a Smurf, and how the sorcerer and his cat had tried to catch him.

Schemer had been silent the entire time, then suddenly spoke up. “I have an idea! Gargamel’s the one who turned you into a Smurf, right?”

Gray nodded. “Right.”

“So he can turn you back! All we need to do is convince him to-”

Thief pushed Schemer aside. “Are you crazy?! This is Gargamel we’re talking about! This Smurf-“

“Gray,” Gray interrupted.

Thief corrected himself. “-Gray doesn’t have a lot of experience being a Smurf! He doesn’t smurf the dangers, or the forest, or-“

“Hey,” Gray spoke up. “If this Gargamel can turn me back into a human, I have to try.” He turned to Schemer, then looked to Thief. “He’s human, so he can’t be all that bad, right?”

Thief’s face told him otherwise.

“Also…” Schemer edged towards Thief. “He’s sure to have several smurfy buttons, or pins, or-“

“Okay, okay!” Thief was trying to sound irritated, but Gray could tell that he was excited. “I’ll help- but I’m smurfing the loot for myself!”


End file.
